Thorough Market Research Is The Foundation For Success
Thorough market research will increase the likely hood of making a tidy profit from the wholesale goods you buy. Start off with a list of 5-10 different ideas and narrow down you search by checking it on eBay to see what the item generally sells for and the sell-through rate for each one. You don't want too many competitors.
You can also use Google's free keyword tool at https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal to find out how many people are searching Google for your product per month. If there are ten thousand or more searches per month for an item, this indicates a healthy market.
Calculate the REAL cost of your item
One big reason why people fail in business is that they don't do the numbers. To accurately discover your real profit potential of an item, you need to add the shipping cost and insurance, eBay fees (or equivalent for other advertising), Paypal and/or credit card fees (these can be a real profit killer), packaging costs and labor involved packaging, and any storage costs to the cost of your item. As you can see, all these might adding up to a significant amount, you wouldn't want to end up with nothing at the end of the day.
Verify ALL Suppliers Found On The Internet
Getting caught out by scammers is a common stumbling block for people new to wholesale. If you are searching for suppliers off your own bat (rather than using a wholesale directory like SaleHoo), it is VITAL to check for authenticity before making a purchase.
Always take the time to:
-Check for a legitimate contact telephone number, this will involve ringing the number. Do not accept a mobile phone number alone. All real companies should have a land line number.
-Go to http://www.whois.sc/and search for the name of the website. A legitimate company will have a domain expiration date in several years time. Most legitimate companies reserve their domain names for 3-5 years or more at a time.
-AVOID suppliers who won't agree to use secure payment methods such as Escrow.com, Credit Card and Paypal Verified.
-Still uncertain? Ask other sellers what their experiences have been with the company you are interested in on eBay forums.
Chinese Suppliers Give The Competitive Edge
For anyone looking to gain a competitive edge, finding a reliable Chinese suppliers is a big boost as wholesale products can be gotten at extremely cheap prices!!
Dealing with China does have risks, but these can be alleviated if you place a small order first, use secure payment methods, get shipping insurance for 110% of the cost of the items, and use suppliers with a good reputation.
A Common Stumbling Block For Liquidation & Closeout
Always ask the reasons for liquidation and closeout sales before you buy them. Although liquidation and closeout sales can be a fantastic source for cheap products, you might end up with a pallet load of broken or returned goods that aren't in salable condition. To be on the safe side, always check if you can return broken items when making a deal with the suppliers.
Negotiate On Shipping & Save
Shipping economically is critical to importing success. Profits can easily get swamped in shipping costs, so take time to get a good deal on shipping. If possible, negotiate CIF (Cost, Insurance & Freight) or DDP (Delivery, duty paid) shipping terms with your supplier as this takes much of the risk - not to mention organization - off your shoulders. FOB (Freight on Board) is the most common shipping term, but don't be afraid to negotiate for better.
Drop Shipping - Can You Really Afford It?
Drop shipping may sound like an irresistible offer - someone taking care of packaging, wrapping and postage - but it can be difficult to profit from this method. Think about it, drop shipping can add up to 10% of the cost of the item, throw in eBay fees and any other costs and you may find yourself having to sell at unfavorable price.
Warehouse Storage Checklist
Believe it or not, items can go missing while in warehouse storage, which can cause a fair amount of distress and unwanted hassle.
When finding a warehouse, ask questions specifically on how they will authorize the release of stock (by phone or fax?), what will happen if you need to cancel an order, frequency of damage claims, dust management, and whether there is an area you can use to photograph items.
Powerseller Wealth
It's a known fact that eBay powersellers are able to command higher prices for their items than ordinary eBay sellers and get more buyers too! To get the best profits on your wholesale items, you need to aim to get and maintain powerseller status.
Growth With A Website And eBay Store
The way to increase profits from wholesale is to build your own website and/or open an eBay store. This allows you to cross sell items, furthermore it also makes it easier for people to find what they are looking for.
For example, if you sell shoes, then customers can easily navigate to browse all black shoes in size 9 and so on. Always include a sentence at the bottom of your descriptions encouraging visitors to check out your other listings - most people will.
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